WTO approves EU duty waiver for Pakistan

GENEVA: The World Trade Organization has approved a European Union waiver on duties for 75 products from Pakistan, a scheme intended to boost textile exports to help Pakistan recover from massive floods in 2010, a diplomat who was present at a meeting of the WTO's council for trade in goods said on Wednesday.

Other textile exporters, such as Brazil, India, Indonesia and Bangladesh, had opposed the plan but dropped their objections after the EU amended the scheme to use tariff rate quotas on 20 products rather than full liberalisation.

The waiver will apply from Jan 1, 2012, until Dec 31, 2013, but first needs to be rubber-stamped by the WTO's General Council. (Reuters